Dozens of far-right Israeli activists breached the Gaza border on Thursday, with about 20 of them driving several hundred meters into the Strip and raising an Israeli flag before being returned by security forces, according to the IDF and the group involved.
The activists belong to Nachala, a hard-line movement that promotes the renewal of Jewish settlements in Gaza, which Israel evacuated in 2005. The group said participants entered what they described as the ruins of Kfar Darom, a former Israeli settlement, and called the move a symbolic first step toward resettlement.
Dozens of Israeli extremists breach Gaza border, raise flag inside Strip
(Video: Nachala)
Video released by the group showed activists waving an Israeli flag inside Gaza. In a statement, Nachala said the action was intended to send a message that Gaza belongs exclusively to the Jewish people and should not be transferred to any foreign control.
The IDF said several Israeli civilians crossed from Israeli territory into Gaza and were under continuous surveillance by military observers. Troops were dispatched to the scene and returned them to Israel, with some leaving on their own and others escorted back by forces.
The military said that later, dozens more civilians attempted to breach the border fence at another location. Several broke through a barrier and entered the buffer zone separating Israel from Gaza but were stopped by IDF and Israel Police forces before entering the Strip.
The IDF stressed that entering a combat zone is strictly prohibited, poses a danger to civilians and interferes with ongoing military operations.
The incident followed recent pressure from right-wing activists urging Defense Minister Israel Katz to authorize a symbolic flag-raising event in Gaza during the Hanukkah holiday, including at the site of the former settlement of Nisanit in northern Gaza. Officials have said such an event would be difficult to authorize because the area is designated a closed military zone.
The breach came a week after a similar incident in which Israeli civilians crossed the Gaza border fence and entered several hundred meters into the Strip before being removed by security forces.